DR: Dealing Range
Also known as: dealing range, DR, ICT dealing range, swing high to swing low range, current trading range
What is it?
A dealing range is the span between the most recent significant swing high and swing low that price is currently delivering within - the frame inside which every premium, discount and equilibrium reading is measured. The two edges are not just any swing points. Each one is the high or low that was set by the last liquidity sweep on that side, which is what gives it weight. On GBP/USD the sell side gets swept down to 1.2650 and price closes straight back up; a few sessions later the buy side gets swept up to 1.2810. That pair of extremes is the dealing range.
The 1.2650 sweep low and the 1.2810 sweep high define the dealing range; equilibrium at 1.2730 splits it, and the retrace to 1.2695 sits in discount.
Equilibrium sits at 1.2730, everything above it is premium, everything below it is discount, and 1.2650 and 1.2810 are themselves the external liquidity price will eventually run for. A pullback to 1.2695 is a discount entry - but only because you named 1.2650 to 1.2810 as the range first. That last point is the whole term. You cannot call a price a discount without stating the range you measured it in: 1.2695 is deep discount inside 1.2650-1.2810 and premium inside a 1.2600-1.2700 range. The frame also expires.
When price sweeps one edge and then shifts structure, a new dealing range is established and every premium and discount reading re-anchors to it, so a level that read as discount an hour ago can read as premium in the new frame. Re-draw the range when structure shifts, not when a trade needs it to look cheap. Your capital is at risk on every entry you take inside it.
Why it matters: The dealing range is the frame every premium, discount and equilibrium reading is measured inside, so naming it correctly decides whether an entry is cheap or expensive.
Equilibrium = (dealing range high + dealing range low) / 2
Every premium, discount and equilibrium reading you take is measured inside this frame, so a mis-drawn range mislabels every entry that follows.
Real-world example
GBP/USD swept sell-side liquidity at 1.2650 and buy-side at 1.2810; with equilibrium at 1.2730, the retrace to 1.2695 was a discount entry inside that range.
How SignalBots handles it
SignalBots signals publish the entry, stop and target together, so you can see where the entry sits inside the range you have drawn before the fill rather than after it. See /risk-warning.
Pro tip
Draw the range on the timeframe that produced your bias and leave it fixed - re-drawing it mid-trade to make an entry look cheap is how the frame stops meaning anything.
Common pitfalls
Measuring from whichever two swings are easiest to see rather than the extremes set by the last sweep on each side, which moves equilibrium and flips the zones.
Frequently asked questions
Which swing high and low do I actually use?
The extremes set by the most recent liquidity sweep on each side, read on the timeframe that framed your bias. A swing that never took out any stops has no orders behind it, so it makes a weak edge for the range.
When does a dealing range stop being valid?
When price sweeps one of its edges and then shifts structure in the opposite direction. That pair of events establishes a new range, and every premium and discount level has to be re-measured against the new high and low.
Is a dealing range the same as a consolidation range?
No. Consolidation is a sideways price pattern you can see. A dealing range is a measuring frame that exists just as much in a trending market, where the high and low keep moving as each new leg sweeps the previous extreme.
Can I have more than one dealing range at the same time?
Yes, one per timeframe, and they routinely disagree. A price can sit in daily discount and 15-minute premium at once, so decide up front which timeframe's range your entry rules answer to.
Where does the liquidity sit inside a dealing range?
The range high and low are the external liquidity, the resting stops price is drawn toward. Everything between them - gaps, order blocks, prior minor swings - is internal liquidity that price works through on the way there.
Trading involves substantial risk of loss. Historical and backtested results do not guarantee future performance. Read the full risk warning.
